Legislative basis for the validation of prior learning

Ordinance No 2 of 22 June 2018 on the documents for the vocational training of persons over the age of 16 specified the applicable documents/certificates.

In the amendments of the Higher Education Act as of 25 February 2020, the additional provisions section contained specific articles on the vocational schools established by the technical university of Sofia as a model of good practice of university-VET school cooperation.

It was explicitly mentioned that the two vocational high schools are parts of the structure of a higher education institution created to ensure better transition from secondary to higher education, with the participation of professors from the higher education institution in the preparation of secondary education students. These professors also participate in the development of curricula and study programmes and provide a methodological basis for practical training. In this capacity, they can carry out validation of professional competences under Art. 167, para. 1, items 2 and 5 of the Pre-school and School Education Act. Cooperation between organisations from secondary and higher education became a prerequisite for considering the official validation of professional competences in higher education.

In February 2021, the Bulgarian Council of Ministers adopted the Strategic framework for the development of education, training and learning in the Republic of Bulgaria (2021-30), developed by the education ministry in cooperation with the main stakeholders. Priority eight: lifelong learning, states that every individual's choice of strategies for education, training and learning will be encouraged, supported, and developed. The validation of non-formal or informal learning (also by taking into account professional experience) was considered one of the ways to expand lifelong learning opportunities.

In 2021, 725 validation procedures were completed in VET centres in Bulgaria. The vast majority who completed received a certificate for validation of professional qualification by profession, and a very small number of people were issued with a certificate for validation of professional qualification for part of a profession. The majority (621) were validated for the profession of assistant educator (for working with children).

It is clear, compared to 2020, that the number of people who passed the validation procedure increased significantly (in 2020, a total of 158 people were issued with certificates after successful completion of validation procedures).

The Act on Amendments and Supplements to the Employment Promotion Act in June 2022 changed VETA. The changes are relevant with the minimum education level requirements of individuals over the age of 16-years-old. This meant that conditions for including them in training to acquire a qualification in professions for the lowest - the first degree of vocational qualification- changed. The possibility of including persons without education in training to acquire a professional qualification was also regulated. Their inclusion in professional training must be combined with the development of literacy competence. These changes created the necessary conditions for increasing the employability and labour market integration of unemployed persons from disadvantaged groups.

In June 2022, the Employment Promotion Act supplemented the list of activities eligible for funding under the active employment policies and for validating professional knowledge, skills and competences in accordance with the VETA.

Based on the ex-post impact assessment of the vocational education and training Act (VETA) carried out at the end of 2022 and the commitments set out in the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP) and the Sustainability plan for school education and lifelong learning reform of 2023, legislative changes were prepared to improve the regulatory framework in the field of VET.

The proposed changes to the VETA included the validation of professional knowledge, skills and competences acquired outside the formal education and training system and were relevant to the award of a partial or full qualification and to changes related to the information activities of the National Agency for Vocational Education and Training(NAVET).More precisely the amendments were related to Articles 40 and 50 of VETA. In short, amendments to article 40 aim to facilitate the validation processes. The amendments in Article 50 of the VETA aim to create a mechanism for the regular collection of data by NAVET in relation to the procedures for validating professional knowledge, skills and competences carried out by vocational training centres (CVTs), thus contributing to effective monitoring and detailed analysis of the validation process.

As a national institution for the coordination of activities in the field of VET, NAVET has a key role in the design, establishment and implementation of the system for the identification and recognition of knowledge and skills acquired through non-formal education and informal learning. Central to the performance of this role are improving citizens' awareness and increasing interest in validation, as well as trust in non-formally acquired qualifications. The methodical support of CVTs by NAVET is a prerequisite that guarantees the effective functioning of the system for validating professional knowledge, skills and competences acquired through non-formal education and informal learning.

The professions for which in 2023 there was the highest interest in validating professional knowledge, skills and competences acquired through non-formal or informal learning were:

1. social assistant;
2. beautician;
3. welder;
4. cook;
5. waiter-bartender;
6. baker - pastry chef.

In 2024, the changes in VETA were approved with the Law on amendment and supplement to the vocational education and training Act. These changes clarified the possibilities for the validation of professional knowledge, skills and competences by regulating the process for obtaining a certificate for the validation of a partial or full professional qualification. They also specified that NAVET publishes information on the procedures for validating professional knowledge, skills and competences and determined that all relevant information should be uploaded by CVTs to NAVET's information system ten days after the validation takes place.